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The Missing (Tommy Lee Jones)

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Review

A girl is kidnapped by Indians and a grizzled frontiersman rides to her rescue. No, this isn't The Searchers, but the film version of Thomas Eidson's novel "The Last Ride." In attempting the same western subgenre as the great John Ford, director Howard may appear to be treading on hallowed ground, but thankfully Howard's somber, raw film -- while not on the level of Ford's classic -- serves as a reminder on the pleasures of the western and the perils of the Old West. In a tough portrayal that sometimes strays towards the two-dimensional (the film's weakest link is Ken Kaufman's generic adaptation), Blanchett plays Maggie, a taciturn healer and mother of two girls. When her eldest daughter is kidnapped by Apache renegades, she must relunctantly rely on her estranged father Samuel (Jones), who has spent the last few decades living with the Apaches, to lead them on a rescue mission. Even with Apollo 13 and A Beautiful Mind to his credit, Howard has crafted his darkest film to date, his characters residing in a near-barren landscape in which hope is as fleeting as sand in a duststorm, and law and order are words that can be found only in books. Jones is at his best with his turn as the father searching for redemption at any price, a man who takes his knowledge of both civilizations, and pits one against the other to save his granddaughter. Overlong at 135 minutes, The Missing nevertheless engages, allowing the viewer to forget some of the genre's conventions and wade instead in the grit and grime of such a treacherous, often exciting journey.

--David Bleiler